Review: One Punch Man

What crossed in your mind when you heard term Superhero? I am pretty sure we have similar ideas: fancy outfit, cool appearance, good looking person, and of course, having special power to kick out bad guys. Though some of superheroes movies included some funny side, we still perceived them as cool and kickass superheroes.

Meet Saitama, a superhero who did not look and give a vibe as superhero. Often perceived as average person with average life, he lived his life casually though once in a while he would kill random monsters which appear a lot in his hometown, Japanese metropolis of City Z. What people did not aware was that Saitama was incredibly strong and powerful, so much that he can easily defeat monsters with a single punch. Though it was beneficial, in other side it made Saitama bored as he had been looking for a good fight which could make him excited.

While he was looking for stronger opponents to meet his expectation, he met new people along his journey. A cyborg, Genos, who witnessed Saitama’s power, then became his disciple. From Genos, Saitama realized that his acts in defeating monsters were not acknowledged by people merely because he had not registered himself as superhero in the Heroes Association! (what a concept! Lol!). Together, they joined the Heroes Association to get official recognition as heroes.

Hence, the adventure started, in which Saitama tried to gain respect as a hero. It had not been an easy one, as most people still looked down on him due to his plain physical appearance, and some even accused him of being a counterfeit hero. Only a small number of individuals, who were also superheroes, recognized his incredible talent. What would happen next?

When I finished reading the available chapters, I quickly understood why people like this manga. Though its concept of superheroes was not new, its characters and plot were not common. Having a plain looking hero who had great power but always misperceived as a troublemaker made me felt sorry and wished something happened to make people realize how great he was (of course it would depend to One-san). Funny thing, I could not help to think if it also happened in real world.

This manga had many misunderstandings which did not give benefits to Saitama, but eventually, the way he handled his misfortune was the significant factor which differentiated him from other people. In a way, it could be applicable in our daily life. We might have times when misunderstandings are inevitable and have ourselves cornered. How we deal with it and react will be the key on what happens next to us and how we feel about ourselves. Indirectly, Saitama taught us to be strong and to always believe ourselves in making decisions.

*(Behind the post conversation)
Saitama: You’re exaggera….
Niken: It’s fact that we learnt something from you *smile*
Saitama: No, you’re really exaggera…
Niken: I SAID WE LEARNT FROM YOU!!

Overall, I think it is a refreshing and fun manga to read. I highly recommend you to read it especially if you are into action and comedy. I just hope the next volume will be soon released and still meet the expectation (yes, I am a selfish reader).

PS. The first season anime of One Punch Main was aired between October and December in Japan. I am excited to see how Saitama “brought to life” in TV screen! 🙂